The hugely popular interactive activity game already enjoyed by more than 1.3million people is back in our area again this year!
Transforming the towns into a real life, interactive game, Beat the Street Hamilton and Blantyre will run from Wednesday 17 March until Wednesday 28 April.
Free to take part, this six-week game is open to everyone, no matter what your age.
Primary school pupils will receive a pack from their school containing a fob, a card for an adult to play, and a map. And the wider community can pick up a card from one of the distribution centres that will be announced shortly.
The game has been adapted to ensure that it’s safe to play during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Residents will shortly see special sensors called Beat Boxes appearing on lampposts around their town. The boxes will be sanitised frequently and temporary pavement markings will be in place to ensure the game remains compliant with current restrictions.
The sensors have also been adapted to make them more sensitive so you don’t need to touch them. Players simply hover their card or fob near the sensor to register the swipe, making them beep and flash to get your journey underway.
Once your journey starts you will have an hour to walk, cycle, scoot, wheel or run to the nearest Beat Box where you will score 10 points for your virtual school, workplace or community team.
Players can join a school, workplace or community team with prizes for the teams travelling the furthest within the game area. The further you travel, the more points you score.
School teams can win up to £350 of sport or book vouchers on each leaderboard while community teams will be eligible to win up to £350 worth of sports and fitness vouchers. Registered players can win ‘Lucky Box’ prizes simply by swiping their card or fob at a Beat Box throughout the game.
Councillor John Anderson, the chair of the council’s Community and Enterprise Resources Committee, said: “We are incredibly excited to be bringing Beat the Street back to South Lanarkshire. Previous games have been very successful in terms of getting people together as a community and inspiring them to get active.
“Beat the Street is the perfect incentive to help people get into green space as it has always been an outdoor game. It is safe to play during COVID-19 and will help get families outdoors, off screens and out of the house, having fun and exercising together.
“It’s more important than ever to stay active and to help your mental and physical health by getting outside in green space at least once a day.”
Beat the Street is being delivered by Intelligent Health on behalf of the council with support from South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, Smarter Choices, Smarter Places and the Scottish Government.
The game was invented by a family GP Dr William Bird who realised that many health conditions could be improved if people were encouraged to go out for a walk in a green space.
As well as getting everyone active, it has been shown to get communities more engaged, less car-dependent and fitter which is vital in the fight against COVID-19.
It has been played in several locations across Scotland, including East Kilbride who played in early 2020; in this game, more than 12,000 people took part and notched up a total of 124,000 miles. Organisers also donated £500 to Kilbryde Hospice when the community managed to exceed the target of 100,000 miles.
More information is available at www.beatthestreet.me/hamiltonblantyre and on social media at @BTSHamBlan
Please be aware that the game date may change. Organisers are working alongside South Lanarkshire’s public health advisors to ensure the game can be launched safely.
